Magnussen in dreamland

There are not many people who would've predicted Kevin Magnussen would finish on the podium in Australia, but that's exactly what the rookie did.

Having gone the whole of the 2013 campaign without a top-three finish, McLaren endured a solid if unspectacular pre-season. However, it all came together for Magnussen at Albert Park this weekend.

First he blew his team-mate away in qualifying as he started P4 with Jenson Button failing to make it into Q3 and then the Dane produced a very good start as he ducked in front of pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton off the line to move up to P3.

Although he came within one second of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo during the final few laps, he settled for third in his first F1 race, matching former McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton's third place when he made his debut in 2007.

"It's hard to believe and it seems so surreal. The car was so much better than it has been and I had just exactly what we needed for the whole race," Magnussen said during the podium interviews.

"The preparation we have done have been fantastic. I have never had a Formula 1 race and you only get limited time testing, so congratulations to the team for doing such a good job."